Frequency-Selective Predistortion Linearization of RF Power Amplifiers

This paper presents a frequency-selective RF vector predistortion linearization system for RF multicarrier power amplifiers (PAs) affected by strong differential memory effects. Differential memory effects can be revealed in two-tone experiment by the divergence for increasing tone-spacing of the vector Volterra coefficients associated with the lower and upper intermodulations tones. Using large-signal vector measurement with a large-signal network analyzer, a class-AB LDMOS RF PA is demonstrated to exhibit a strong differential memory effect for modulation bandwidth above 0.3 MHz. New frequency-selective RF and baseband predistortion linearization algorithms are proposed to separately address the linearization requirements of the interband and inband intermodulation products of both the lower and upper sidebands. Theoretical verification of the algorithms are demonstrated with Matlab simulations using a Volterra/Wiener PA model with memory effects. The baseband linearization algorithm is next implemented in a field-programmable gate array and experimentally investigated for the linearization of the class-AB LDMOS PA for two carrier wideband code-division multiple-access signals. The ability of the algorithm to selectively linearize the two interband and four inband intermodulation products is demonstrated. Adjacent channel leakage ratio of up to 45 dBc for inband and interband are demonstrated experimentally at twice the typical fractional bandwidth.